


In Another Place, At A Different Time

by Anonymous



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Enlistment Fanfic, Goodbyes, It's almost 2021 and i still can't tag for shit, Kim Minseok | Xiumin-centric, M/M, One-Sided Relationship, Post-Lu Han leaving EXO
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-29
Updated: 2020-12-29
Packaged: 2021-03-11 01:35:48
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,188
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28407096
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: They'd lost contact in the years following their goodbye. Minseok purposely lost contact in the years following their goodbye, using a blanket of excuses to hide under. Today is the result of an Instagram direct message, a tentative hello in reply, and a desire to enter his thirties free of the burdens of his twenties.Or, Minseok meets with Lu Han before his enlistment for the first time in nearly five years and they talk.
Relationships: Kim Minseok | Xiumin/Lu Han
Comments: 1
Kudos: 10
Collections: Anonymous





	In Another Place, At A Different Time

**Author's Note:**

> So this fanfic is about six years in the making and is technically part of a long work that I'm not too sure I'm comfortable posting. I had a thought a very long time ago of "what if Lu Han had come to Seoul for his JYP audition and met Minseok" then the events of 2014 took place and my life got in the way and I never expanded much beyond that. Over the years I managed to write a fanfic cycling through that idea in scenes but this part was the only one I felt comfortable posting.

Minseok maneuvers around the many bodies in the street with practiced ease, his too-expensive sneakers soaked from stepping unceremoniously into a few puddles along the way. It had rained earlier, a nonstop torrential downpour that had him almost reaching for his phone to cancel. It had let up eventually, and he'd reluctantly deleted the message asking to reschedule the meeting. A black mask covers the lower half of his face, and his cap covers the upper half. No one looks in his direction, no one calls out his name. No one says anything.

He stops suddenly standing in front of a makeup store, the girls of Red Velvet smiling down at him with pretty painted lips from the poster in the window. He grimaces and looks away, trying to push back down the thought that he might have been followed. He wants to take a look around but fears he may come off suspicious and out-place, fears that it may draw eyes to him. It already feels like he's trying his luck, like he's doing something risky and dangerous even if he isn't.

With a deep inhale, Minseok moves from the makeup store and walks through the entrance of the shop right beside it.

Minseok spots him immediately. His hair is artfully ruffled, black sunglasses rest on the bridge of his nose as he looks out of the far window, his sleeves rolled to the elbow showing off the way his Rolex glitters underneath the café lights.

Minseok bites back a sigh and makes his way to the square table located in the room's darkest corner. Dark eyes, heavy and unreadable behind the tinted frames, catch his own as he approaches, and Minseok feels the way his heart picks up the pace, beating loud and clear in his chest. He wants to curse it for getting him into this situation for reacting in such a manner.

"Woah," is the first thing he's heard from the man in front of him in years as Minseok removes his cap. They'd lost contact in the years following their goodbye. Minseok purposely lost contact in the years following their goodbye, using a blanket of excuses to hide under. Today is the result of an Instagram direct message, a tentative hello in reply, and a desire to enter his thirties free of the burdens of his twenties. He regretted that drunken proclamation with every step that led him here. "You look good!"

Minseok rubs his hands along too short strands, feeling the prickle underneath his rough hands. He grins, ears already burning as he takes a seat. "Shut up," he offers in return, chancing a glance around the place. It's empty compared to some of Seoul's more prominent café spots, suffering from slow mid-afternoon Wednesday traffic, harsh weather, and terrible location. It was a perfect hangout spot for idols. It was a perfect hangout spot for him.

"You do too. Still as flashy as ever."

"I didn't expect this place to still be around. They turned the bookstore next door into an Etude House of all things; I figured this place would be long gone with it."

Minseok hmms deep, his eyes on the nearest window. There's not much to see besides buildings and signs, but it's easier than staring at the person across from him.

"Can't imagine what it would be like to come home one day and see this place gone," Minseok admits. That's been his biggest fear regarding his enlistment, seeing the world move on without him and not being there to witness it. He wouldn't be far removed from civilization. He would have vacations, and communication with the outside world was allowed, but it would not be the same. In many ways, it would be like his debut days, only hearing about the stuff that happened within his family and with his friends after it had long occurred.

"Lu–"

"Min–"

They speak at the same time, voices overlapping and dying together. Lu Han laughs soft and Minseok grimaces.

"You go first," Minseok says, gesturing with his hand.

"I've missed you," Lu Han says, his smile turns bashful, the sunglasses slipping further down the bridge of his nose. "I know I'm not allowed to say that, but it's the truth. You were my best friend."

"But you're happier now, aren't you? No one forcing you to do the things you hate. No one disrespecting you or badmouthing you for having bad days. You're doing things at your own pace, now." Minseok notices the way Lu Han's eyebrows furrow in open confusion and gives him a smile. "I wasn't lying earlier. You do look good, better since the last time I saw you."

Luhan grins, bright as he finally tugs his sunglasses all the way off, letting Minseok take a look at his bright and happy brown eyes. "I'm happy you agreed to see me."

Minseok swallows deeply, his heart aching in his chest. "Of course, I would agree. You were my best friend too."

"Are you nervous?"

"Yeah, but I've gone through SM's training. I feel like I can do anything after four years of that."

"That's true," Lu Han says, grinning, "four years of SM makes the military seem like preschool. Besides, you'll probably end up befriending the captains by the first week. People either love you or just haven't met you yet."

It feels weird, and Minseok voices this. It feels like goodbye more so than it did back in 2014. Maybe when he comes back, Lu Han will have moved on to a different chapter in his life. Maybe he will have started a family. Maybe when Minseok comes back, he–himself–will not be the same person he once was. Maybe this will be the last time they see each other. Maybe, Minseok's silly little heart will finally let go.

"It does, doesn't it," Lu Han agrees. He sits back in his chair, fond eyes looking over Minseok so intensely that Minseok wants to look away. "Who'd have thought we'd end up like this?"

"I never thought I'd actually debut with the boy I found crying in a men's room at an entirely different entertainment company, and yet here we are over ten years later.

"Jeez, you just had to bring that up, didn't you," Lu Han says even though he's still grinning brighter than Minseok remembers. His phone buzzes loudly, vibrating from wherever it's tucked away. Luhan takes it out, frowning for the first time since Minseok arrived.

"Work," Minseok guesses.

Luhan gives him a rueful twist of his lips, eyes still soft and sweet. "I'm surprised your phone hasn't gone off yet."

"Oh, it's on silent," Minseok says, cheeky and teasing. "It was nice seeing you again."

"You too," Lu Han says, standing, his sunglasses–Burberry–in his hands. "Stay safe, eat well, and be happy."

Minseok laughs, standing up as well as he places his cap back over his buzzcut. "I think you just said all the things I wanted to."

This time watching Lu Han turn his back on him doesn't feel like he's witnessing his heart being torn from his chest.


End file.
